The Company You Keep Matters | CEO’s Corner

During our recent board meeting, we carved out an hour for a full company Q&A. It was one of the best company events we have ever held. The feedback from our team was great. One of the main reasons for why it was such an amazing event is that it removed the veil of what and who our board is to the larger PaySimple team. It introduced the four, incredibly amazing and talented directors to larger PaySimple team.

Our board members are smart, thoughtful, relevant, and committed to helping PaySimple—and myself—continue to grow. It would be easy to be humble and just say I got lucky, but I didn’t. The board, including our lead investor, was consciously curated and put together with careful and specific thought.

I have seen many bad boards create churn and unnecessary turmoil for the CEO and company, and a few have actually killed companies with competing and unaligned agendas. Most of these boards were put together out of need, desperation or both, and are filled with several financial partners with competing agendas.

But the reality is, the company you keep matters. Surrounding yourself with people who support you and have your best interest(s) in mind means you have people around who are willing to have the hard/honest conversations when they are needed. They will deliver constructive feedback that can be difficult to hear, but it’s coming from a genuine place of caring and support.

These are people who are truly happy for you when things go well, but also there to call out your blind spots when you can’t see through the forest—or are unwilling to take off your rose colored glasses.

Whether it is a board of directors, a group you join, or friends, surround yourself with people who can help you grow and who have the qualities you aspire to achieve.

Eric Remer founded and currently serves as CEO of PaySimple. Prior to PaySimple, he founded the Conclave Group and co-founded I-Behavior, the latter of which ultimately sold its online division to Akamai and its offline division to Y&R. He is passionate about creating platforms, growth, and watching his kids be kids.